Statement by the Press Secretary
European Union Enlargement and Turkey

The United States welcomes the European Union's decision to open
without delay accession negotiations with Turkey upon deciding in
December 2004, that Turkey has fulfilled the Copenhagen political
criteria. This is a visionary decision by European leaders to build a
truly inclusive European Union. While the United States is not a
member of the European Union, we support Turkey's pursuit of its
European aspirations, and encourage our friends and allies to work
energetically towards this historic goal. The United States strongly
supports Turkey's ongoing commitment to political and economic reform,
which will benefit the Turkish people and advance Turkey's
long-standing strategic objective of joining with Europe. Turkey's
continued evolution toward Europe, and its eventual membership in the
European Union, demonstrates for the continent and the entire world
that Islam and democracy are fully compatible.